Northern Ireland U-19s 1-1 Turkey U-19s
Rebecca Bassett scored her second goal in two games to give Alfie Wylie’s side the lead but an equaliser just two minutes later from Ilayda Civelek meant they had to settle for a draw.
Northern Ireland had their chance to take the lead on 22 minutes as a cross from Bassett was handled but when taking the resulting penalty, she put it wide of the goal.
Bassett then made amends for her penalty miss on 66 minutes. The striker timed her run perfectly to get on the end of a through ball and put her shot low into the bottom corner.
However the lead didn’t last long, as 2 minutes later, pacey winger Civelek took aim from the edge of the area and her shot went under the keeper to make it 1-1.
Northern Ireland would have to play the last quarter of the game with ten players as Teresa Burns got a second yellow card. From the resulting free kick, Derya Arhan hit the bar with the follow up effort going over the top.
But moments later. Bassett ran through on goal and was met by the on rushing Turkey keeper Nur Yaman who saved her effort outside the box, giving the referee no option but to send her off.
Northern Ireland U-19s 1-0 Turkey U-19s
The week’s first meeting of the two sides had seen starts for new faces Brenna McPartlan and Megan Reilly, both fitting into the centre of midfield.
The hosts took the lead on 26 minutes, Bassett was brought down just inside the box and she stepped up to convert from the spot.
Chloe Orr then saw her free kick on the left side of the penalty area beat the keeper but bounce down off the bar and was cleared as the referee blew for half time.
The best chance of the second half was on 66 minutes, a free kick by Lauren Robson had the Turkey keeper back-peddling to ensure she wasn’t beaten.
The two matches were part of preparations for the Irish, who host the UEFA U-19 Championships in August.
Source / photo: irishfa.com
